Iraqi Kofta in Tomato Sauce
Beef meatballs with single allspice, garlic and tomato sauce.
Preparation: 15 min · Cooking: 30 min · Total: 50 min · 2 servings
Ingredients
- 250 g Raw minced beef, approximately 15% fat
- Small onion, counted before grating and draining — 0.5
- 2 tbsp Tomato paste
- 240 ml Initial hot sauce water
- Garlic cloves, minced — 2
- 1 tbsp Vegetable oil, total
- 0.25 tsp Ground allspice, single spice
- Salt, to taste
- Black pepper, to taste
- Conditional boiling water, if needed (optional) — Separate from the measured initial liquid; add small measured amounts only if drying before fully cooked.
Instructions
Measure this recipe and prepare safely
For the base 2 servings of Iraqi Kofta in Tomato Sauce, measure the ingredient list before starting. Cup = 240 ml, tbsp = 15 ml and tsp = 5 ml. Keep raw foods separate from ready-to-eat food and refrigerate perishables until needed.
Grate and drain the onion
Count half a small onion before grating and draining it. Half of the recipe uses a quarter onion; fourfold uses 2 small onions. No drained gram weight is assumed.
Mix the beef and allspice
Mix 250 g raw beef with the drained onion, 0.25 tsp single ground allspice, salt and black pepper from about 3 minutes until uniform. Do not replace allspice with seven-spice.
Mix the beef and allspice: 180 seconds
Shape uniform meatballs
Shape similar balls about 3 cm across. Keep waiting raw meatballs chilled; do not add the old rice or parsley ingredients.
Brown in the measured oil
Heat the total 1 tbsp oil over medium-high heat and brown the meatballs in uncrowded batches, checking from about 5 minutes. Move briefly to a clean plate while making the sauce; browning does not seal in juices.
Brown in the measured oil: 300 seconds
Warm garlic in the same pan
Stir 2 minced garlic cloves into the same pan over medium heat. Check around 30 seconds until fragrant without scorching; no extra oil is added.
Warm garlic in the same pan: 30 seconds
Add the measured tomato liquid
Dissolve 2 tbsp tomato paste in 240 ml initial hot water and pour into the garlic pan. Half uses 1 tbsp + 120 ml; fourfold 8 tbsp + 960 ml. Bring to a boil.
Continue cooking immediately
Return the browned meatballs immediately to the hot sauce in this same continuous cooking session. Never chill or store partly browned meatballs for later completion. Bring the sauce back to a gentle simmer.
Simmer and monitor the sauce
Cover with the normal lid and simmer gently, checking from about 20 minutes. Add small measured conditional boiling-water top-ups only if drying before centres are cooked; thick sauce alone is not a doneness test.
Simmer and monitor the sauce: 1200 seconds
Verify the thickest meatball centres
Check the thickest centres with a clean thermometer: the selected household target is 74°C. The guidance minimum for ground beef/lamb is 71°C; 74°C is a conservative choice, not a universal legal requirement.
Serve the kofta and sauce
Serve the fully cooked meatballs with their sauce using clean utensils. No unlisted yellow rice or fresh tomato is included in the meat mixture.
Portion and store safely
Refrigerate promptly in shallow portions, aiming within 1 hour, at 4°C or colder. Use within 24 hours. Do not leave a deep pot to cool on the counter. This selected household limit is not a validated shelf life.
Tips
- Ingredient quantities scale exactly; instruction quantities describe the base 2-serving batch. Use equivalent vessels or manageable batches. Times remind you to check, not to ignore doneness.
Common mistakes
- Do not add ingredients from the previous scaffold or treat initial water, discarded process water and optional top-ups as one fixed consumed total.
Substitutions
- Only alternatives explicitly named in the ingredient list are included in this master.
Storage
Refrigerate promptly in shallow portions, aiming within 1 hour, at 4°C or colder. Use within 24 hours. Do not leave a deep pot to cool on the counter. This selected household limit is not a validated shelf life.
Reheating
Reheat appropriate leftovers at most once to 74°C throughout, then serve immediately. Rice must be cooled promptly and kept no longer than 24 hours; reheating does not rescue mishandled food.
About this recipe
Iraqi Kofta in Tomato Sauce is presented here as an owner-supplied Iraqi household version. Specific ancient origins or universal regional claims have not been independently verified.
Editorial approval does not establish independent kitchen testing. Check allergens and follow safe food handling.